Monday, December 19, 2011

For the last two months, sports talk radio has devoted a lot of time to Tim Tebow.

Most personalities have said the young man is unworthy of playing in the National Football League (Skip Bayless being the lone supporter), but he somehow kept managing to win.

Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos faced an uphill challenge when they played red-hot Tom Brady and the New England Patriots on Sunday.

This time, there was no last-minute magic from Tebow, who had guided the Broncos (8-6) to four straight fourth-quarter comebacks and six straight wins.

Considering the Broncos were 1-4 before Tebow took over as starting quarterback, there seems to be no arguing with his success.

But I'm really here to talk about another side of Tim Tebow.

It seems he has been spotted on the field making gestures that could be construed as religious.

The New York Times thinks we should keep religion out of football.

By golly, if football is an all-American sport, then goldang it, we gotta separate church and state and ban this anti-first amendment behavior!

Never mind that the first amendment says NOTHING about the separation of church and state. Nor does the U.S. Constitution.

Never mind that if the media does not want to cover these offensive breaks in head long collisions by grown men runnng into each other at top speed for a few seconds of prayerful contemplation on what really is important in life, they could simply focus the camera on a cheerleader (for some good old deadly-sin worthy lust!).

You see, in America, we hold our atheletes to a high standard.

We can accept them partying with hookers and drugs in hotel rooms, cheating on their spouses, having sex in the rest room of a bar, killing dogs for sport and killing innocents in multiple drunk-driving incidents.

But we will NOT stand for them PRAYING!

That's just WRONG!

Besides, atheletes are ROLE MODELS.

Look at the impact that Tebow's behavior is having on our youth.

Earlier this week, some kids were suspended at a high school on Long Island for "Tebowing" — dropping to one knee in prayerful contemplation — in the hallways.

You read it right, folks.

We had some high schoold kids who were not drinking, not doing drugs, not engaged in unprotected sex.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

As Stephen T. McCarthy noted on his blog earlier this week, Bocephus (Hank Williams, Jr.) was dismissed by ESPN for a comment made about President Obama, and as Stephen correctly points out, there really was no basis for ESPN making the move.

ESPN permanently pulled Williams’ theme "Are You Ready For Some football?" (a reworked version of "All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight") from its "Monday Night Football" telecasts because of his statements.

Williams, however, said that last Tuesday night he informed his manager to "tell ESPN and Disney adios."

Williams added that "As of May 1st in 2012, ladies and gentlemen, me and my song will be free agents." His song had been used for 22 years by the program.

Williams, who likened Obama and House Speaker John Boehner’s golf game to a hypothetical one between Adolf Hitler and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said he was not saying Obama was like Hitler and added that his comment was misunderstood.

Williams stopped by "The View" on Tuesday to discuss his comments, telling the hosts he has no regrets.

"I’m not calling him Hitler," he said. "It’s an analogy."

Liberals, including high-level members of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) were astounded, rumored to have said "We did not think a redneck knew what 'analogy' meant, let alone be able to use it in a sentence."

Okay, I made that last one up because I loathe the terror tactics those organizations use to intimidate their views into the mainstream. But isn't it a sad state of affairs when a man gets fired from his job for saying something while he is not on the job about something that has nothing to do with his job?

You might think an American citizen had a right to make comments freely….maybe what we need is a Citizen's Bill Of Rights.

Oh, that's right-we already are supposed to have one!

Even after all of the controversy his statement stirred, Williams said he does not wish he had used a different comparison. "You know what, at this point, I really don’t," Williams said.

Williams repeatedly denied he had linked Obama directly to Hitler, telling the hosts, "It could’ve been, how do they know who I’m talking about? I guess it’s called stepping on the toes of freedom of speech."

Williams made another splash on Monday with his song "Keep the Change" with lyrics hitting back at "Fox & Friends" and ESPN.

"So Fox & Friends wanna put me downAsk for my opinion then twist it all aroundSupposed to be talkin’ about my father’s new CDWell, two can play that gotcha game, just wait and seeDon’t tread on me!"

At the end of his song, Williams also added the lines

"Yeah, you can keep Fox & Friends and ESPN outta your homes, too! ‘Cause Bocephus and all his rowdy friends — and his song — is out of there!"

Williams is giving away the song for free on his website, and said on "The View" over 100,000 copies have been downloaded.

Williams is in good company, as he is not the first Caucasian to have ties severed with the NFL after "controversial" comments. He's just the first who was fired for making the comments on a forum that had nothing to do with the NFL!

The sports media are apparently such politically correct wimps that they simply bow to groups like the ACLU or SPLC.

Howard Cosell once referred to wideout Alvin Garrett as a "little monkey" on Monday Night Football in 1983. Coincidentally, Cosell was not back the next season.

CBS analyst and amateur eugenicist Jimmy "The Greek" Snyder commented in 1988 that blacks were "bred to be the better athlete because ... the slave owner would breed his big woman so that he would have a big black kid." This time the firing was almost immediate.

Rush Limbaugh commented about the press coverage for quarterback Donovan McNabb, saying "I don't think [McNabb's] been that good from the get-go. I think what we've had here is a little social concern in the NFL. I think the media has been very desirous that a black quarterback do well. They're interested in black coaches and black quarterbacks doing well. I think there's a little hope invested in McNabb and he got a lot of credit for the performance of his team that he really didn't deserve. The defense carried this team."

The comment caused a lot of controversy and accusations of racism on the part of Limbaugh, forcing Limbaugh to resign.

Interestingly enough, at the time, other sports analysts and many fans shared Limbaugh's viewpoint, and McNabb was blamed for his team's loss in the Super Bowl and has played poorly in recent years.

Other examples include Steve Lyons, who was fired by Fox for cryptic remarks about Mexicans and Jews, Lee Hamilton, who resigned as a Vikings broadcaster for making racist comments, CBS broadcaster Billy Packer calling Allen Iverson a "tough monkey" during a Georgetown-Villanova game, and San Francisco radio personality Larry Krueger who was fired after calling the Giants' lineup "brain-dead Caribbean hitters."

When an African American makes the controversial comment, then it's ok.

On Dan Patrick's ESPN Radio program, NFL-star-turned-NFL-analyst Michael Irvin postulated that Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, who is white, owes his athletic ability to the miscegenation of a distant relative with one of her slave hands.

Or, as Irvin so eloquently put it, "[Romo's] great, great, great, great Grandma pulled one of them studs up outta the barn."

Notice a double standard here?

The sports media is so AFRAID of organizations like the ACLU and SPLC that they'll let blacks do and say whatever they want, but they can't fire the whites fast enough.

Jimmy The Greek and Rush Limbaugh got fired for saying things that were TRUE.

Rush Limbaugh and Bocephus got fired for stating their opinions.

All the firings-white guys.

Michael Irvin (the black guy) makes an insensitive and totally out-of-line comment slandering Tony Romo AND his great great grandmother…and he's still on the air!

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Al Davis, the controversial and combative owner of the Oakland Raiders died yesterday at age 82.

Davis, whose feuds with the National Football League reshaped professional football over the last half century and helped spur its rise to pre-eminence in the landscape of American sports, died at his home in Oakland.

Without Davis, there would be no franchise owners like George Steinbrenner, Jerry Jones or Mark Cuban.

Al Davis, outspoken and brash, was a central figure in the merger of the upstart American Football League with the established N.F.L., and paved the way for the extravaganza known as the Super Bowl.

The Raiders’ colors, silver and black, were chosen by Mr. Davis to intimidate. So was their insignia, a shield emblazoned with the image of a pirate in a football helmet in front of crossed sabers.

Mr. Davis was a coach, general manager and owner of the Raiders for nearly 50 years. He left briefly, in 1966, to become the commissioner of the A.F.L., vowing to battle the older N.F.L. for the best players available. That attitude helped lead the N.F.L. to agree to play the A.F.L. in an annual championship game, which became the Super Bowl. In 1970, the leagues played a united schedule, creating the modern N.F.L.

Davis feuded for decades with the former N.F.L. commissioner Pete Rozelle and sued the league in the early 1980s so he could move the Raiders from Oakland to Los Angeles.

Then, 13 years later, he moved them back.

Mr. Davis became the symbol of a franchise that garnered a reputation for outlaw personalities and a kind of counterculture sensibility. The Raiders were the first franchise in the modern era to have a Latino head coach (Tom Flores), a black head coach (Art Shell) and a female chief executive (Amy Trask).

He was also one of a dwindling number of N.F.L. owners whose riches came primarily from the business of football. There were no hedge funds or shipping companies in Mr. Davis’s background. He simply ran the Raiders — the team appeared in five Super Bowls under his ownership, winning three — and his business model could, for all intents and purposes, be summed up by the phrase that became his franchise’s motto: “Just win, baby!”

R.I.P. Al Davis

Also in the media this week was future Hall of Fame quarterback Brett Favre.

The one-time Super Bowl champion will forever be recognized as an iron man due to his streak of consecutive starts.

Now, can he just please go away?

We had to deal with season after season of Brettie crying wolf over retirement.

Brett Favre is old news, and the only person who can't deal with that is Brett Favre.

During a recent interview, Has Been commented on the Green Bay Packers' Super Bowl win behind the arm of quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

“I’m going to be honest, I was not surprised. The biggest surprise to me would be that he didn’t do it sooner," Favre said.

Favre continued, "[Aaron] just kind of fell into a good situation. On top of that, he's a good player. I don't think there's any pressure on him now, the talent around him is even better than when I was there."

Really, Brett?

Favre's last year with the Packers was in 2007, and he ended his season with an interception.

Rodgers won the Super Bowl with the team in 2010, with less of a running game than the 2007 team, and with a starting tight end injured all season.

Said differently, the Packers offense had less talent in 2010 than it did in 2007. Except for one position, and that's quarterback.

Simply put, Aaron Rodgers is a better quarterback than Favre.

Last season, was statistically the worst of his career. Rodgers threw for just 3,922 yards, 28 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.

Over the course of his career Rodgers has a 14,048 yards, 99 touchdowns and only 34 interceptions. This has been over the course of essentially just three and a half seasons. His 100.5 quarterback rating is among the top of active quarterbacks.

Favre's career QB rating was 86.0. Over his first four seasons, it averaged a little higher, but nowhere near Rodgers.

Since winning his first Super Bowl, Favre's playoff record was 3-6 with 16 interceptions.

Favre also set the record for most interceptions in the playoffs at 30.

Favre is a media hound with a pathetic need to be in the limelight. That means every few months the rest of us have to suffer through a little more media exposure than the Wrangler commercials.

When asked if he thought Favre's shadow would ever go away, Rodgers gave the perfect response.

"I don't think so. And I think on some level, you need to embrace the fact that you're mentioned with a future Hall of Famer in the same sentence -- a lot."